<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Here Be Dragons by KelyseLlewes</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26798131">Here Be Dragons</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/KelyseLlewes/pseuds/KelyseLlewes'>KelyseLlewes</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Adventure &amp; Romance, Dragons, Multi, Romance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 07:21:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>12,895</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26798131</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/KelyseLlewes/pseuds/KelyseLlewes</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>My name is Keely Quinn. I'm a Dragon Handler. I also happen to have a unique relationship with my own dragon, an Antipodean Opaleye called Po. Po is basically an over-sized, fire-breathing puppy and what we have is one of a kind. When the opportunity arises to tag along with the transfer of a Hungarian Horntail alongside the dashing Charlie Weasley, things can only be looking up. It's time for an adventure.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Charlie Weasley/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter One</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Chapter One</strong>
</p>
<p>WHAM! CRASH! SMASH!</p>
<p>The noise woke me from my sleep and as I jolted upright, I whacked my head off the top bunk. BAM! “Geez!” I shook myself coherent and jumped from the three-level bunk bed. I tottered briefly before flinging open the window on my left. I blinked twice and my eyes finally landed on the thundering noisemaker. Said noisemaker was twenty feet long with white opalescent scales and big, almost comical, green eyes, and was galumphing around the central courtyard of the Dragon Keep, knocking over various things in the yard.</p>
<p>“Oy!” I yelled. The dragon froze and turned to face the direction of my voice before her goofy eyes finally landed on me. “PO! What the hell?!”</p>
<p>I nixed going out the door and simply hoisted myself through the window before dropping to the ground, a seven-foot drop but nothing I was not used to. I could drop the length of my dragon and wouldn’t bat an eyelash.</p>
<p>In nothing by my pajama tank, cozy track pants and bare feet, I marched up to the dragon. “Po-ti-di Opaleye! What do you think you’re doing?”</p>
<p>The thing with dragons is that they’re not entirely domesticated. It is impossible to fully train a dragon and when you do, it’s usually more with chains and magic to subdue them. I and my colleagues are of a different opinion, evident of my usually well-behaved Antipodeon Opaleye dragon, who was kept almost free-range, and currently in very deep trouble.</p>
<p>She, not unlike a dog who knows she’s in trouble, head hung and tail, not quite between her legs but not moving quite so fervently anymore, slowly made her way to where I had stopped. Hands on my hips, standing in the courtyard, giving her the Stare, a look I had learned over my Apprenticeship and perfected in Journeywoman and professional years, was a warning to her that she’d not been the best of dragons this morning.</p>
<p>“Po-ti-di, what is your problem?” I spoke with a more soothing tone as she stopped before me. She dipped her head to nudge my midsection gently and with my hand I touched her between the eyes. This was my acknowledgement to her that while I was upset at being woken, she was still my girl. I moved to her right side, trailing my hand appreciatively over her pearly white-grey scales. She was gorgeous, despite her fierce temper sometimes.</p>
<p>“Keely!” I heard my name being called and turned back towards the bunk house. Shifting myself to look, I saw Pippa, fellow Dragon Keeper and stunning blonde, dressed in khakis and boots, and pulling on her leather gloves to prepare for the days’ work. “Backdoor! Delivery for Po!”</p>
<p>I waved a hand, letting her know I was coming. “Po-ti-di is hungry,” I talked to the dragon, working myself back around to her head. “Well your meal is here. So, calm down!”</p>
<p> I raced back up to the bunkie, in through the front door this time, and quickly dressed myself in similar khakis to Pippa, tying my long red hair back and drawing on my boots and gloves. I was buttoning up my leather vest over a loose-fitting green button-down when the back gates of the Keep started to open. There was a THUMP, THUMP, THUMP from Po as her tail smacked the hard dirt ground. “PO!” I warned and she ceased her movements. “Patience.” This was a word I had taught her right from the beginning, knowing it would be the most valuable lesson.</p>
<p>The gang – Pippa, Georgie, Deacon, Dilly and I, started hauling the stuff off the delivery truck that had made the long mountain trek to bring our weekly supplies. Manual labour around dragons, giant and fantastic beasts, was far more satisfying than magic. With five of us, we could easily have moved the entire truckload in less than ten minutes. Instead, we took an hour to unload and store the supplies and then another twenty minutes on top to mix Po’s meal, several sheep carcasses, and a few whole chickens for good measure. Dragons were expensive to maintain, but when working in the same field it never felt like an issue. No matter where I worked, I was able to keep and train Po, using her in the field and as a personal hobby. Po was a useful hobby because she was also my profession.</p>
<p>As soon as the load was dealt with it was time to start the day, which included the five of us going about our various roles within the Dragon’s Keep compound. For me that included repairing everything that Po had damaged earlier. I made sure she was secured in what we called a make-shift kennel, though it really did nothing to retain the twenty-foot magical lizard. Her wingspan was twice her body length so should she ever decide to randomly get up and leave, which had happened, it would do nothing to stop her. It was more just a place where she could be that was out of the way. She was well fed now and not causing a ruckus, so I had faith the rest of the day would be left undisturbed.</p>
<p>Repairing the Dragon’s Keep was trickier than unloading, but it was also made simpler by the use of my wand. I retrieved it from the cubby by my bunk, not having needed it previously, strapping the holster to my leg as I returned outside. A holster was easier and safer than putting it in my back pocket. I knew many colleagues who’d made that mistake and gone through a few wands and injured one or both butt-cheeks at the start of their Apprenticeships.</p>
<p>Waving my wand around to repair the Keep was rather like being back at school. It was no teacup or smashed vase, but it was still satisfying to say <em>Repairo</em> and see the pieces just fit themselves back together in a lovely reverse calamity. Once that was completed, it was on to the daily jobs.</p>
<p>I checked in with the office first only to find Dilly, our office clerk, fighting with a filing cabinet that would not open. “You know you have to ask it nicely before it will give you anything, right?” I told him, picking up and sifting through a few papers on his cluttered desk.</p>
<p>He turned to glare at me. His morning seemed to have taken a turn for the worse since unloading the delivery truck. “I’ve tried, several times. The word <em>please</em> just does not register with this piece of crap!”</p>
<p>I laughed, “Okay well calling it a piece of crap won’t help your cause either. Nor will your tone of voice. What’s so important then?”</p>
<p>“Transfer papers. Some Keepers heading to Romania want to bring their Hungarian for a layover. But in order to get the proper forms and get it all filled out, I need in the cabinet!” He made to punch the solid metal folder cabinet, but I held out my hand.</p>
<p>“Calm down, just give me a second.” I dropped the papers I’d been snooping through and moved to the cabinet. Removing my gloves, which often kept my hands from getting too calloused, I brushed one hand over the top of the cabinet and then the other down the front, as if to tickle the spine of the sometimes-inanimate object. Magical filing cabinets are sometimes worth the effort because they alphabetize and organize everything for you, but then again, they often have temper tantrums at inopportune moments and have been known to eat paper, should it taste particularly good.</p>
<p>“Transfer papers, please,” I said in a calm and delicate voice.</p>
<p>I jumped back as the second drawer shot open and spit out the forms, sending them flying all about the room before it snapped shut again. “Well, it opened,” I shrugged at Dilly. “Just leave it be for now, it needs some time to cool down.”</p>
<p>“Filing cabinets shouldn’t have to cool down,” Dilly hissed, picking up a few of the transfer papers before giving up and pulling out his wand to whizz the documents into his hand. “Inanimate objects should not have feelings.”</p>
<p>“That does not explain why you get so testy sometimes.” Out the window of the office, Pippa was standing there grinning. “You never leave this office,” she said, “Can we call you inanimate?”</p>
<p>I chuckled, taking the documents from Dilly while he was distracted, shuffling through the request forms, again being nosy.</p>
<p>Dilly huffed at her, “I do too leave the office. Was I not out there helping you unload earlier?”</p>
<p>“S’pose you were,” Pippa conceded. “We all know about the cot you keep in the closet though, and the fact you almost never sleep in your bunk.” Pippa bunked with me. Our unit held six – three level bunks but we were the only two permanent residents. Pippa, spunky and not at all your typical blonde, was tough as nails and the Chief Medical Officer of our bunch. She would see to both the dragon health issues and treated our wounds as well, burns and cuts and such.</p>
<p>“I can’t sleep in that bunk! Deacon snores almost as bad as Po!” His voice had raised an octave and from across the Keep we could hear a “HEY!” from Deacon. “I DO NOT SNORE AS BAD AS THAT DRAGON!”</p>
<p>“I’d compare Deacon’s snoring to a mountain troll, not a dragon actually,” came from Georgie who was hauling a wheelbarrow across the yard.</p>
<p>I snorted a very unladylike snort, before finding a particularly interesting piece of paper. Listening to my coworkers and close friends’ squabble was a genuinely pleasing daily occurrence. With five people always around and various people coming in and out of the Keep, both regularly and irregularly, we sort of made up a strange family dynamic.</p>
<p>The piece of paper though, was what caught my attention. It was the Transfer requisition from Romania. The Hungarian was an increasingly dangerous beastie according to the form, and so would be very hazardous bringing it here, especially around Po, a rather non-violent dragon, one of the more well-behaved species that existed. It was not however the dragon that interested me; instead, it was the dragon’s Handler.</p>
<p>His was not an unfamiliar name; I had met with him on several occasions. One such occasion included a rather drunken night in Auckland, New Zealand, where I bumped into him at a pub…and everything else was a little fuzzy from there. He, like most other Dragonologists and Handler’s I came across, was fascinated by my connection with Po, an apparently one in a million-chance connection between a witch and dragon.</p>
<p>His name was Charlie Weasley. And before me on the sheet of paper was his scribbled signature as the Senior Handler making the transfer today. Smiling to myself I set the paper down and continued with listening to my coworkers.</p>
<p>“Mountain troll, dragon, what’s the difference when it comes to how they snore? Deacon snores so loud he shakes the bunk! How am I supposed to get any sleep?” Dilly was still arguing. “That is why I sleep in the office, because it’s QUIET!” he yelled across the compound to Deacon.</p>
<p>In response I heard an exceptionally low grumble and the ground shook slightly. “Perfect timing, Po,” I said, making my exit from the building. “Hey Deacon, is that you?” I teased, heading in his direction.</p>
<p>“Ha ha!” Deacon replied, crossing his arms across his chest. Deacon was the head of the Keep, a sort of jack-of-all trades, doing everything from heavy labour to office work to mucking up after the dragons in residence. With forty years of experience under his belt, he was a silver fox who knew what he was doing, and he did it well. The grey hairs around his temples gave him a slightly edgy, sophisticated look but his pet peeve was people thinking he was unfit for this life. His age had very little to do with how much he could accomplish when he put his mind to it. “Give her a Sleeping Draught,” he told me, “That should help with those snores; we’ve got too much prep work to do today to have that earthquake disturbing us.</p>
<p>I nodded, “You got it, Boss. What time is the Hungarian coming in?”</p>
<p>“Last owl I received said between noon and sundown. With a Hungarian it’s not exactly like they’ll be on time for tea.”</p>
<p>I nodded. “Last time I Transferred a Hungarian we didn’t arrive at our destination until the day after, all of us the worse for the wear,” I told him.</p>
<p>“Ah the good ‘ole days!” He joked.</p>
<p>In high spirits I worked through the rest of the morning around the Keep, taking a small break for lunch, and then continued working into the afternoon. The Keep was staffed permanently by just the five of us, but there weren’t any other dragons in-house, as we liked to call it, at the moment. There were a few in the mountains and in amongst the trees closer to the coast, their Dragon Handlers in the field keeping an eye on them, truly roughing-it. The Keep was the main base of operations for the Wales Dragon Reserve, we maintained transfers, training, breeding in special cases, and the rest and recovery of injured or poorly handled dragons.</p>
<p> We received an owl at around three o’clock saying that the Hungarian and its Handler’s were about an hour from arrival.</p>
<p>“Where are we setting them up?” I asked Deacon as I strapped on my utility harness. It was specially made and latched itself to a unique saddle I’d had crafted for Po.</p>
<p>“Put the dragon in the Back Forty. They don’t need to come here since it’s just a short layover and the Back Forty needs a makeover anyway. This will just give it a head start.” The Back Forty was a stretch of land, roughly forty acres, give or take, rough with rocky terrain and tree stumps. Its last dragon occupant was a Hebridean Black. Now <em>she</em> was a beauty, but alas had a nasty temper due to her previous capture in the wild. She was trained briefly and then transferred.</p>
<p>“Roger that. Po and I will head over for the arrival. Charlie will no doubt be exhausted and could use an extra set of hands for the beastie.”</p>
<p>“Charlie is the Handler, but he’s also got a few others with him. Just send a note if you need additional support,” Deacon suggested.</p>
<p>“Will do,” I shouted over my shoulder, making my way to where Po now was neither snoring nor asleep. She was awake and having heard the jingling of my belt, knew it was time to go out for a stretch. I tried to take her out about once a day, if only just around the Sanctuary, but some days we just didn’t have time. Today she would be getting her fair share of flying.</p>
<p>“Alright Po, ma beaut!” I said, hauling her saddle from a nearby fence. With an excessive number of straps and harnesses I was glad to be a witch. A few flicks of my wand and the saddle was strapped in place around Po’s middle. Po was Kick-Trained. Some dragon Handler’s used spells and draughts and reigns to steer their dragon. Po was special in that I could kick her in the sides with the hand-crafted spurs I’d already lashed to my boots, and she would do exactly what I needed. “Time to fly!”</p>
<p>She extended her right wing down towards me, the bones providing ample footing for me to climb up and on to her back, and before I’d even sat down, she walked a few steps into the centre of the yard. Seated, I gave the stand clear shout to make sure no one was in immediate danger. I received the all clear shout back and with two swift kicks, Po lifted her wingspan and started creating wind.</p>
<p>Her opalescent wings glinted in the afternoon sun and as we ascended, I clipped myself on to the saddle, adjusting to make sure I was in the proper position. From years of experience it was habit now to find where I was most comfortable because it was also what Po was used to. Ascension stopped and then we were soaring forward at increasingly faster speeds.</p>
<p>The Back Forty was a little ways from the Keep, so in getting there, because she had been cooped up for a few days, I decided it would be a little treat for her to go out over the cliff face, get a whiff of salty air and then comb her way through the rock formations that rose from the sea. It was a bit of a detour but wouldn’t add any extra time to our trip. I stood up in the stirrups of the saddle, bracing myself for action. Several practiced maneuvers later and we were zipping in and out of the sea spray, sending startled birds flying. It was a moment we both relished.</p>
<p>Coming out of the formations, sea spray misting my face, we took a sharp turn to our right and flew up and over the cliff face once more, heading now towards the rocky peaks of the Back Forty.</p>
<p>Dragons had become a sort of obsession ever since my third year at Hogwarts. It was just everything to do with the mystery and danger surrounding the beasts. I never wanted to sit at a boring job day in and day out for forty plus years. So, when I graduated with a specialization in the Care and Study of Magical Creatures, I knew where I wanted to go with my life. I signed up the next day for Apprenticing at the Dragon Reserve in Sweden. Due to my exceptional grades in the subject and my eager interview, as well as for the fact they were incredibly short staffed, I was taken on immediately and the rest was history.</p>
<p>My Apprenticeship lasted half as long as most other Handlers and as a trained Dragonologist with a Dragon of her own, hatched from an egg and trained and ‘tamed’ personally, I was several years ahead of a lot of people twice my age. With a few exceptions, Charlie Weasley being one of them.</p>
<p>Charlie was…different. He was a dedicated Handler and I was always surprised by how much work he did and how much he knew. His whole life was dragons. So much so that the only time he was remotely close to being detached from that world was that night in New Zealand when we were completely sloshed. I couldn’t recall very much from that night, but I knew for damn sure we weren’t talking about dragons…or talking very much at all.</p>
<p>On every other encounter with him however, we could just talk for hours upon end about Dragons. We lived and breathed those beasties, and the one I was currently flying was testament to that very fact. Po was my pride and joy.</p>
<p>We reached the Back Forty and I settled Po a little out of the way while I began an orchestra of flying wood and mechanical parts from the debris of the previous enclosure. I was quite literally waving my wand from place to place putting together a make-shift kennel that with a bit of magical luck, would contain the Hungarian Charlie was bringing.</p>
<p>Once finished with my sonata of construction, I twirled my wand once and then twice before replacing it in my side holder, a sort of homage to the old westerns that my Dad used to love. Dad loved the Wild West idea. I did too, only my stallion happened to be a twenty-foot dragon who breathed fire. Not exactly a mustang. It was a subconscious behaviour I’d adopted, to twirl my wand, something I started when my Dad passed away when I was eighteen. He never got to meet Po, though I know he would have loved her. I turned my head to look at my dragon. She was sitting calmly, enjoying the feel of wind blowing past her face and the gentle hum of the earth beneath her feet. This was where she belonged really; where I belonged as well, with nature, but things are never really that simple.</p>
<p>A loud screech exploded to my left and my head spun to see a team of Handlers on brooms flying in over the coastline, making a somewhat zig-zaggy bee-line towards Po and I.</p>
<p>“Show time, Po-ti-di! Behave!”</p>
<p>She snorted. I rolled my eyes. It was merely a precaution these days to tell her to “behave”, another command word I’d taught her early on. She was so well behaved that it went without saying now, and she knew it all too well. Her snort was almost her saying, “Puh-lease!” in a sassy tone.</p>
<p>At this range it would have taken several minutes for my broomstick to appear, the <em>Accio</em> charm not working instantaneously as we all might wish, so instead I positioned myself on the roof of the enclosure I’d constructed. I shot off several blue flares from my wand to distract the Hungarian – they are partial to that colour for some reason and smiled when I’d caught his attention. I dropped myself to the main doors, swinging them aside and then lighting a giant blue flare right in front of the entrance. The Hungarian would snap and land right there, skidding inside, giving myself and his Handler’s time to close the doors and begin our magical enchantments.</p>
<p>The plan went off without a hitch. I saw immediately that while the Hungarian was feisty and sufficiently angry from being guided by magical spells and tethers, she was also tired and exhausted from the flight. She was ready to give up. The blue fireball lured her right into the enclosure and, hopping off their brooms, the three accompanying Handlers began working several charms and enchantments to seal her inside for the time being.</p>
<p>It wouldn’t hold for long, there would always have to be two Handler’s there to refresh the charms after a few hours, but it was still better than nothing for the night.</p>
<p>Finishing the work, I slid my wand away once more and turned to look at Po, checking on her. She, cool as ever, was still sitting exactly where I’d left her with a sort of bored look on her face, if dragons can even look bored.</p>
<p>“Show off!” I yelled at her, when really, I was immensely proud. She handled the presence of other dragons very well. She snorted again.</p>
<p>“Merlin’s beard, Quinn!” a voice sounded from behind me. “You’ve got yourself an overgrown puppy, not a dragon!”</p>
<p>The redhead looked windblown and thoroughly alive. His handsome, wind beaten, somewhat tanned and freckly face was brimming with excitement and happiness as he teased me; a regular occurrence, especially considering how docile Po was becoming.</p>
<p>“She could singe your hairs if she wanted to, Weasley,” I countered. “Shall we have a demonstration?” I raised my hand to snap my fingers, an immediate alarm for Po to stand on the offensive.</p>
<p>“Whoa!” he held up his hands in surrender. “Easy there, tiger. Only kidding, she’s a beauty and I still have no idea how you manage it.”</p>
<p>I shrugged, “A woman’s touch.”</p>
<p>“I’ll just bet.” His eyes twinkled when he said it. “Eddie! Kendrick! Get over here, she’s fine and secure for now! Come meet Keely.”</p>
<p>“New boys?” I shifted to watch the Handlers come towards me, hands on my hips.</p>
<p>“New enough. First Transfer of a Hungarian.”</p>
<p>“Oh fun. How you boys holding up?”</p>
<p>They stood before me with a much less impressive demeanor than Charlie. He was standing tall and firm on the rocky ground. These men, almost entirely green from the looks of things, were uneasy and shaky from the exertion it required to keep a Hungarian in check. Several rigorous hours on a broom plus constant alert for any mishaps and they were completely pooped.</p>
<p>“Edmund Rainville, Kendrick Donas, meet Keely Quinn.” Charlie introduced me and I nodded my head to each of them.</p>
<p>Their hellos were rather subdued, but I couldn’t blame them. Six years ago, I had been in their shoes after my first Hungarian Transfer. “Good to meet you boys. Now, if you can still ride a broom, due south about twenty minutes is the Keep, hot food and warm beds. You two can go crash for a few hours. I can send a beacon ahead too if you need a guide.”</p>
<p>This perked their spirits up a bit. Each nodded their head once more and with a nod from Charlie they had grabbed up their brooms again and taken off due south, following a green beacon I released from my wand.</p>
<p>“You would keep me here to yourself,” Charlie said, teasing once more as his companions faded in the distance.</p>
<p>“Soft spot for greens,” I admitted, ignoring his teasing. “You know what it was like. Even if it was a long time ago! Aren’t you like fifty yet?” I teased him right back.</p>
<p>“Some days Quinn, some days. Thirty-three, as a matter of fact.”</p>
<p>We moved along the slope up towards the Handler’s cabin which was set just a short distance from the enclosure overlooking the Back Forty. Po trailed behind us at a leisurely pace.</p>
<p>“Happy Birthday,” I replied.</p>
<p>“Har har! Couple months ago, now.”</p>
<p>“Practically all grown up,” I retorted.</p>
<p>We took up post on the front porch of the cabin, made with a direct line of vision to the Dragon shelter. Po curled herself around the left side of the building, content to just lay there and sleep. Luckily the Sleeping Draught was still active in her system so when she closed her eyes, she was completely at peace.</p>
<p>Charlie moved to sit on one of the folding chairs on the porch, unbuttoning his jacket, and I climbed up to remove the saddle from Po. This would give her a chance to breathe completely unrestricted. With her lying down it was easier to slip it off. When she stood about fifteen feet tall and I came in at around five feet eight inches, it wasn’t exactly easy but I enjoyed working with my hands, running my fingers over her scales, cooling down in the evening air but warm from her body heat.</p>
<p>“One of these days, Quinn, you’re going to have to tell me your secret,” Charlie chimed in once I’d placed the saddle on the porch and came to sit beside him, unbuttoning my vest. “Yours is a very unique circumstance with regards to that beastie.”</p>
<p>I shrugged, “I don’t know what I can tell you that I haven’t said already. The symbiotic relationship Po and I have is simply different, but I don’t know what I’ve done differently than anyone else. Maybe because I don’t use force and raised her from a wee little thing? I’m not sure.”</p>
<p>“I’m also wondering why, if you have these Dragon Whispering skills, you don’t choose a more prestigious job outside of the Reserves. You could be teaching Dragonology at some of the top universities in the world.”</p>
<p>“You of all people are asking me why I don’t pick a desk job over a job in the wilderness?” I raised an eyebrow at him. “Really?”</p>
<p>He nodded his head, “Granted it would never be my style, but you have an unmatched talent.”</p>
<p>“I also have an extremely level head and stone walls and grading papers would drive me insane!” I laughed.</p>
<p>He laughed as well. “Me too. Just so long as you don’t think your talents are wasted out here.”</p>
<p>“Uh, did you not see me leap down from that roof and ensnare a dragon in a building I literally constructed twenty minutes beforehand? I’m pretty sure I’m okay where I am.”</p>
<p>He nodded and we fell back into silence. A few moments later he said, “There really is nothing like it. You’ve got a particularly unique situation, yourself, but even at a considerable pay raise, this view would never compare.”</p>
<p>“I’m not concerned about money. I’ve never had a very lavish lifestyle. I would rather camp on the rockiest parts of this world than spend a day on a beach somewhere.”</p>
<p>“Hmm…Quinn in a bikini? Now there’s a thought.” His eyes twinkled.</p>
<p>“Flirting with me, Weasley? And outright? That’s a new one.” I squinted sideways at him.</p>
<p>He laughed. “Ah well, New Zealand will always have a special place.” He tapped his right hand to his chest, over his heart.</p>
<p>I nodded. I didn’t overthink his comment. I had grown accustomed to shutting my mind off to random rambling thoughts. In an environment as dangerous as the Reserve where we worked with deadly beasts daily, overthinking could be the difference between life and death. I was more a girl of action than of thought anyway. If I overthought the reason why Charlie Weasley was flirting with me just off a several hour-long flight with a cranky Hungarian...I shut down that train of thought and shook it off.</p>
<p>“So, Transfer said you were taking the wee Hungarian beastie to Romania. What’s there for her?”</p>
<p>Charlie shrugged his shoulders, “She is enroute to a very romantic dinner, in fact.”</p>
<p>“Truly? Lucky her. Where’s the other inbound from? And why are you not on that trip?”</p>
<p>“He is already there. Dorie is looking to hatch at least one Horntail from this union. Maybe I will be the first ever Hungarian tamer!”</p>
<p>I laughed. “Oh dear, such a small man for such big dreams. How is Dorie?” Dormund Ridgebit was a dear friend and Chief Handler at the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary. He had taken over for his father, Harvey, after he passed in 1973. I had been to Romania several times and Dorie was always a pleasure to work with. He had knowledge of dragons coming out of his ears. His focus was on breeding though, and as there was a serious lack of witches and wizards interested in Dragon Husbandry, his passion bled through his personality like crazy.</p>
<p>“He is madly determined to be the next Keely Quinn. He wants to one-up you though, as you can see with this Hungarian.”</p>
<p>“You’d think he’d start with a Welsh Green.”</p>
<p>“That is what I said!” He laughed. “But you know Dorie, single-minded to the point of recklessness. Nothing will stop him now that he’s got his mind set. He’s spending a fortune getting this girl to Romania. Sent me to get her and all, one his senior Handlers sent to retrieve the female while the greener Handlers rein the male.”</p>
<p>“I was wondering. I figured you were still in Romania. You’re bringing her from the Hebrides, right?”</p>
<p>He nodded. “Yep, MacFusty made the deal with Dorie. Eddie, Kendrick and I Floo-ed over a couple of days ago.”</p>
<p>“You’re still a long way from Romania. It’s only you and those two? No one else?”</p>
<p>He shook his head, “Nope. Why, you don’t think I’ve still got it?”</p>
<p>I chuckled, “It’s really not that. Where are your next stop-overs?”</p>
<p>“There are a few Keeps across Europe. We are stopping in Germany, outside of Stuttgart, and then again on the border of Slovakia and Hungary. From there it’s a straight shot to Bucharest.”</p>
<p>I shifted in my chair. “Damn.”</p>
<p>“Shit-ton of work, eh? Glad to be cozy here in Wales with Po, I bet?”</p>
<p>I looked down for a second. “Actually, that sounds absolutely amazing, to be perfectly honest.”</p>
<p>Charlie turned his head and looked at her. “Really?”</p>
<p>“Sure. I haven’t been anywhere in months. It’s hard because of Po. She’s sort of my ball and chain. I don’t go anywhere where she can’t go. I was offered a position back in Kopparberg, working with the Short-Snouts around the Annual Broom Race. But I’d be bouncing back and forth between Kopparberg and Arjeplog on the regular and the reserve in between is over 900 kilometers. I don’t think Po—”</p>
<p>“Hey!” Charlie’s hand reached over to rest on my knee. “You don’t have to explain to me. Po means a lot to you. I get it.”</p>
<p>“That doesn’t mean I don’t miss the transcontinental transfers though. I remember taking another Opaleye from Australia, hopping across Southeast Asia, stopping in Bangladesh and Turkey. We came into Turkey just as the sun was setting behind us. I turned in my saddle with Po and just let it wash over me. It was bloody majestic.”</p>
<p>“I can just imagine. The way you talk about it. You miss being out there, don’t you?”</p>
<p>I nodded my head. “I really do.” He hadn’t removed his hand from my knee and was staring intently at me. “What?” I asked.</p>
<p>“Well, I guess what it all boils down to is…come with us?”</p>
<p>My eyes widened. “Seriously? Please don’t tease me. Are you actually offering?”</p>
<p>He shrugged his shoulders again, “Why not? I know you’re qualified. It will only be a few weeks.”</p>
<p>The idea of getting out of Wales and flying across Europe was almost too much. My energy exploded and I jumped out of my seat. Charlie did likewise. “Yes, yes, I want to come!” I threw my arms around him in excited embrace. “Thank you!” I withdrew and looked at his smiling face. “No really, thank you.”</p>
<p>He nodded, knowingly. “Don’t mention it. Do you think Po can handle the Hungarian?”</p>
<p>I smiled brightly. He knew Po would be coming with me, and that meant so much to me. “She can take her.”</p>
<p>I jumped from the front porch to where Po was resting. “Po!” She opened one eye and then the other, raising her head slightly. “You and I, my girl, are going to Romania!”</p>
<p>THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!</p>
<p>Her tail was wagging up and down on the ground behind the cabin. She knew what I was talking about, smart girl. I laughed and launched myself at her head, falling on her face, wrapping my arms under her chin.</p>
<p>Po nodded her head up and down trying to shake me off. I finally relented and fell to the ground, flat on my back. Po looked down at me before dropping her head on my diaphragm playfully, knocking the air out of me. “Hey!!” I struggled to wiggle myself free. “Oi! Oaf! Not. Fair!”</p>
<p>She gave the dragon equivalent of a chuckle, a sort if cackle at the back of her throat and then let me get to my feet.</p>
<p>Charlie had been watching the exchange from the front porch, arms folded across his chest. As I returned to where he was, I saw him shaking his head. “Seeing you with her, it goes against everything I know to be true.”</p>
<p>It was my turn to shrug. “We know we don’t make much sense. We understand each other though. It cannot be explained.”</p>
<p>“It will be good for her to stretch her wings and do a bit of traveling.”</p>
<p>“Are you talking about me or Po?”</p>
<p>He stuffed his hands in his pockets and gave me a pointed smile before hopping down the stairs going back down toward the structure where the Hungarian was being held. It had been quiet. I was sure he just wanted to check to make sure it was secure.</p>
<p>I leaned over the railing to where Po was resting. I indicated my head to Charlie, “What do you think, Po? Do we like him?”</p>
<p>She exhaled a puff of smoke through her nostrils. So, it was mild respect from her, then. I chuckled, “Yeah, I know. Maybe though. Maybe.” I looked after Charlie again, watching him adjust the enchantments, ensuring the Hungarian was tucked away nice and tight.</p>
<p>My mind drifted back to thoughts of that not-so-sober night in Auckland and I found myself biting the corner of my bottom lip and my stomach felt like I could breathe fire. I turned my face to look back out over the landscape of the Back Forty, watching the horizon as the rocks dipped off into the sea. In a few days, I would be flying and wrangling, two of my favourite things, and I couldn’t wait. I didn’t know exactly when I’d become restless with the Dragon’s Keep. But I got shivers down my spine thinking about the trip ahead. It would be hard; it had been many years since I’d Handled a Hungarian. But I was up for the challenge. My eyes found Charlie again as he made his way back to the cabin. Oh boy, was I up for the challenge.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter Two</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Chapter Two</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Charlie and I passed the evening hours in quiet conversation about dragonology. I brewed us both cups of coffee and we sat out on the porch of the cabin until the sun faded over the horizon.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>There were few people in our field who were as skilled at our age. I was lucky that Deacon was exceptionally knowledgeable and on Charlie’s end, Dorie Ridgebit was no slouch when it came to his experience with dragons, but there was just something about speaking with someone with roughly the same number of years under their belt who wasn’t still green around the ears. I could think of only a handful of other Senior Handlers who had excelled as quickly as Charlie and myself.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I spoke to him openly about my connection to Po whilst the opal-scaled dragon snoozed beside the cabin. The Sleeping Draught wore off near the end of the second hour and her snores began to shift and vibrate the loose rocks in her vicinity whenever she inhaled. I was never reserved about discussing Po with Charlie. With others, perhaps, but his curiosity stemmed more from a desire to learn than a desire to tame and subdue. I’d definitely met a few of those trainers over the years. Dragon wrangling was a hard business and sometimes the result was hard and embittered trainers who resorted to force. Po wasn’t exactly a well-kept secret in our community but there were those who I’d steered clear of in order to prevent any mishandling or abuse. That thought just gave me shivers.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> Luckily, most in our line of work, especially the younger trainers and Handlers, were keen on understanding and improving. It was only the wizened old crusts of the business who weren’t as open to adapting their ways and sought to harm the dragons in their care to bring them into submission.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Have you ever thought about speaking at Hogwarts or Ilvermorny about it?” Charlie asked when I said as much. “Those old crusts you’re talking about won’t be around for much longer and there are less and less new recruits. Your relationship with Po might encourage a few people to sign up and start an apprenticeship.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I shrugged, “I hadn’t really thought about it. Not that I haven’t been asked. I suppose I could.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’ll bet Hagrid would be chuffed at the thought,” Charlie laughed. “Kettleburn would have messed himself at the thought but I mean, Hagrid hatched a Horntail so I’m sure he’d ask all about that wee beastie you’ve got,” he gestured to Po.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Po cracked one eye open to look at Charlie at the ‘wee beastie’ comment. “Yes, he’s talking about you,” I laughed. She just huffed out a plume of smoke from her nostrils and closed her eye, returning to her nap.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You see,” Charlie observed, taking a sip of his coffee. “It’s freaky, this connection you’ve got with her. I think it’s fascinating, so my money’s on others finding it intriguing as well. You should write to McGonagall, see about being a guest speaker during a Care of Magical Creatures class or two. Could be fun.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I narrowed by eyes at him. “Maybe. First you suggest that I should teach Dragonology and now this. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were trying to eliminate the competition here in the field. Am I getting too good for you, Weasley?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Not in the least, Quinn,” he laughed. “It was just a thought. Might help stave off some of this restlessness you’ve been experiencing. You did just jump at the chance to wrangle a Horntail over a distance of 3000 kilometers. I know a few Handlers twice our age who would have hummed and hawed over that kind of decision for days, weeks even. It took you seconds to decide.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I looked out over the Welsh landscape, considering his words. “True enough. Perhaps the monotony was getting to me. Wales hasn’t seen an influx of dragons in over a year. We get these stopovers every few months and there are dragons being wrangled and trained in the mountains, but I can’t commit to training another dragon when I’ve got Po. It’s hard to find the perfect fit at any Sanctuary when the duties usually involve training wild dragons.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You could always transfer to Romania,” he said, rather off handed, which earned another narrowing of my eyes towards him. Just what was he up to? “With it being the largest Sanctuary in the world, there’s plenty of space and plenty to do. And with Dorie eager to one-up you in the training department there’s bound to be little dragonlings to look after. I always wondered why you chose Wales after you completed your Handler’s exam in Sweden. Seems an odd choice for someone of your talents.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Po was too young to be around so many full-grown dragons all the time,” I replied. “It seemed logical to move here to complete her training first in a quieter sanctuary and Deacon wasn’t hard to convince.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And now?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Now Po’s almost ten years old and I doubt she’ll get much bigger. She’s stupidly well-behaved too,” I added with no small amount of pride, “so maybe she’d do well around dragonlings. Suppose I’ve already made up my mind to head to Romania to help you with this transfer, so anything can happen.” I paused before continuing. “Are you qualified to make a transfer offer like that? What if Dorie doesn’t want me there, stealing his thunder?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Dorie would be a moron not to take you and use your knowledge and experience. He’d be an absolute dingbat and I’ll tell him just that, to his face, if he even thinks about refusing you,” he said effusively.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Well I appreciate the vote of confidence, Weasley, but we’ll see how this Horntail Transfer goes and go from there. Who says I want to be near you all the time anyway?” I teased, really only half-jokingly.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>His eyes twinkled as he grinned a cocky grin, “Me? I’m a hoot, Quinn. How could you not want to be around this,” he gestured errantly to himself with his right hand, “all the time?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I rolled my eyes, “Merlin’s beard. There you go, giving yourself a big head. Sometimes you’re just too much, Weasley.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Or am I just enough?” he waggled his eyebrows at me, and I rolled my eyes again, chuckling. He was shamelessly flirting with me again and again I pushed it down and away.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He was charming and cocky, and his confidence was intoxicating. I could very easily get used to being around him all the time. But I’d bet 100 galleons that would be a very bad idea in the long run – Charlie Weasley didn’t do girlfriends or relationships, everybody knew that. His life was dragons. Lucky for him, so was mine. Seemingly a match made in heaven really, but I dismissed that thought just as quickly as it had arrived.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It had been five hours since he’d arrived, and it was time for the switching of the guard. I sent a beacon off towards the Keep alerting whoever was on watch to wake Eddie and Kendrick and send them back on up so that Charlie and I could trade off and get some food and sleep. It was also time to reinforce the enchantments around the Horntail enclosure.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I took our coffee cups back into the cabin, giving them a little rinse and upending them on a dish cloth to dry and then flicked my wrist at the woodstove. Eddie and Kendrick wouldn’t want to sit on the porch all night while they kept guard, refreshing the enchantments every few hours. The cabin was comfortably furnished so they’d be able to keep warm inside without them falling asleep and the dragon escaping. Merlin, I hoped they weren’t <em>that</em> green.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Charlie was standing at the top of the steps with his hands in his pockets when I exited the cabin. “You good, Quinn?” he asked.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I nodded, “Lead the way, Weasley.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I descended the front steps, walking in the direction of the dragon enclosure while I turned right and made my way to Po. She lifted her head as I approached, leaning into the night breeze as it flew past her scales. Dragon’s scales are tough as diamonds but there is a little sensitivity around the nose, eyes, and under the chin. Po didn’t have a lot of spiky protrusions from her as most other dragons but there were enough to still classify her as a predator.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ready to head back?” I asked, lifting my right hand, palm up, so she might rest her chin on it. She did so willingly and closed her eyes briefly, a sure sign of affection and trust amongst dragons, since most rarely took their eyes off humans out of fear and aggression.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I pulled out my wand from its holster and magicked her saddle in place once again. Then I motioned for her to follow me, re-holstering my wand, as we headed after Charlie who was busy flicking and swishing his wand over the enchantments around the dragon enclosure.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>There were only a few low rumblings from the kennel as the Horntail grumbled about being locked in for the night, but no doubt she was still exhausted from the journey there. She’d be in raring good form come sunup.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“She good?” I called to Charlie as he made his way back to where Po and I were standing.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“She’ll hold,” he replied.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I started buttoning my vest back up and cast a sidelong glance at Po. I had an idea but it very much depending on the temperament of my dragon. I look in the direction of the Keep noticing three small figures on brooms illuminated by the dusk sky heading our way.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Looks like your guys have been joined by a third,” I commented, nodding my head in that direction to Charlie.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He looked and just grunted. His long day was catching up with him and he’d become a man of few words.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>We stood quietly and watched as Eddie, Kendrick, and Georgie landed about twenty yards away. I raised my arm in greeting. “They talked you into guard duty, hey Georgie?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Senior Handler was of short and stocky build, had warm, kind eyes and a bristly grey moustache that stretched out across his top lip. Most of the time he reminded me of a walrus, but he was fearless and dedicated and generous. He’d been transferred to the Keep from out in the training field on account of a dodgy knee injury a few months back. It still twinged whenever it rained, but he wasn’t one to shirk his daily duties (as evidenced by the wheelbarrow he’d been pushing around the yard this morning) and he was determined as ever to get back out.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Convinced Deacon that I was up to it,” he huffed. “Old buzzard thinks I’ve got one foot in the grave, as if he’s never had leg injury before.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I smiled, “Well, good. Keep these two company.” I was grateful for Georgie being there with Eddie and Kendrick. I hadn’t thought beyond sending them for a respite earlier, but the idea of two greenies keeping guard overnight while Charlie and I, the more experienced Handlers, went off to get some shut eye. With Georgie tagging along my worries evaporated. “Fire’s on and there’s a pot of coffee that’s only a few hours old up in the cabin, boys.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“We just tucked in the Hungarian,” added Charlie, “so she’s good for a few hours. Since there’s three of you now, we’ll spell you off in about six hours. Send word if there’s any trouble.” The trio nodded and headed off in the direction of the cabin.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Charlie went around the side of the enclosure to where he’d propped up his broom against a boulder. He was out of sight when I called to him. “Hey Charlie, have you ever ridden a dragon?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He came back around the corner, slowly peaking around to meet my grinning gaze, a look of disbelief on his face. “I have not.” He moved into full view, loosely gripping his broom handle. “You can’t ride dragons, with the exception of your wee beastie, and I wasn’t sure she’d ever let me get within ten feet of her if I tried.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Well, Po and I had a little talk,” I said, “and we thought you were kind of okay. Jury’s still out, but I think with a little bit of persuasion, and maybe a little bribery, she’ll let you on her back. What do you say?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>His mouth turned up to one side. “You’re serious? What do I say? Do you know how many Handlers would jump at a chance like this?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I do know,” I replied, moving around to Po’s right side, placing my hand on her pearly opalescent scales. “And I’m asking you. Are you up for it?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He looked at the broom in his hand before shaking his head and leaning it up against the enclosure. “She ever carried two people before?” he asked, making his way over.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Nope. But you don’t look <em>that</em> heavy.” I knew my eyes were twinkling as I teased. I wasn’t terribly worried about how Po would react. She might feel more entitled to a larger reward for her good behaviour, but I doubted she’d object too much to his riding her. I had a sneaking suspicion that she’d use it as an opportunity to show off and scare the pants off him and I’ll admit I was a little excited to see that confident and cocky grin knocked off his face.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I moved back to Po’s head, which she leveled with mine. “Come here,” I held out my hand to Charlie. “Lay your hand, palm up.” I cupped my hand under his, guiding it. Po wouldn’t snap at my hand, so I left it there as I lifted his hand to just below her chin. Charlie wasn’t shaking but I could tell his nerves were firing on all cylinders as he approached the beast, no wand in hand and no gloves.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Po gave the hand an assessing look, shifting her questioning eyes between Charlie and me. I gave a slight nod of my head to my dragon – this was a test for her, and she knew it. I’d only done this with a handful of other people, mostly those in and around the Keep who had to live and work alongside her. She needed to trust them, or her hackles would always be up at the arrival of someone new. Charlie was the first outsider I’d tried to engage with her. Most others got the hint that she was a dragon and tended to keep their distance.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I could see the moment she made up her mind, deciding that she was going to pass this test. She sniffed at our hands, scenting that my hand still rested beneath his. Then she gently nudged our hands with the tip of her dinner-plate-sized nose. It wasn’t quite her chin, but I had expected that much. The chin was reserved for those she trusted implicitly. After nudging our hands, she then dipped her nose directly on top of Charlie’s hand, letting it rest there, her nostrils flaring slightly, a sign of mutual respect and understanding. She didn’t close her eyes, again another expression reserved for those she trusted.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I let her nose rest there for a few seconds, never breaking eye contact with her before dropping my hand from under Charlie’s. His hand remained touching Po’s nose and I took a step back. I shifted my gaze to Charlie then, watching as he took her in – my beautiful and majestic creature. Merlin, I was so proud of her.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> “Lower your hand slowly,” I said softly to Charlie. He did as instructed and then stepped back when Po lifted her head.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He exhaled. I didn’t think he’d been breathing the entire time his hand was resting against my dragon’s nose.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Her head is…soft,” he whispered, almost to himself. Most dragons definitely did not let you get that close to them.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Come on,” I said, moving to Po’s right side. “I don’t have an extra harness, I said, but you can lash your belt to mine and I’ll harness to the saddle. That should be sufficient for the ride back to the Keep.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Po draped her wing out for me to clamber up into the saddle. I stood on her back, steady and sure-footed, just behind the saddle, and turned back to Charlie who was still on the ground. “Did you see how I did that?” I asked. He gulped and then nodded. I smiled, “Good. Follow my steps and climb up. I’m right here.” My hand hovered over my holstered wand as a precaution, hoping I’d use it more to aid in his ascent rather than control my dragon.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Charlie shifted his shoulders back and moved forward. Po didn’t shift a muscle. My standing on her back was a sign to her that we weren’t ready to take off just yet. If I’d sat down she would have become restless to get airborne almost immediately.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I leaned down to take Charlie’s hand and guide him the last few steps up to the back of my dragon. “You good?” I asked when he was beside me, feet shifting on Po’s scales uncomfortably. It took a while to get used to the idea of standing on a giant twenty-foot magical creature and I’d definitely taken a tumble off more than once, but now it was second nature to me.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Charlie nodded,” Yes.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I nodded back, “Good. Now unbuckle your belt.” He frowned. “You’re going to belt the front of your belt to the back of mine,” I reminded him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh right, yes, of course,” he mumbled. “I forgot.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I turned away from him, facing forward. I still didn’t want to sit down or Po would take it as a sign to start taking off. I heard Charlie’s belt buckle and then felt a tug at my waist as he came up close behind me and looped his belt through the back of mine. It was as close to him as I’d been since Auckland and damn me if it didn’t give me a little thrill of excitement.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“All buckled,” he said into my ear.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I nodded. “Right foot and then left as we move onto the saddle.” This could get awkward and we probably looked really foolish, but I wasn’t taking this offer to have him ride a dragon lightly. If we were going to do this, we were going to do it as safely as we could manage with only one harness.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>We shuffled forward until our feet were on either side of the saddle. “Now bend your knees and sit down. It’s probably going to be fairly uncomfortable to start with, but we can adjust when I’m latched on.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>We bent our knees and together took a seat on the saddle. Thankfully, the soft leather was long seat enough for the two of us. As soon as our bums touched the saddle, Po stretched out both wings and began turning herself in the direction of the downward slope of the Back Forty, readying herself for takeoff. Her movements caused Charlie’s hands to swiftly come around my waist. I chuckled lightly. I knew I was being pretty cavalier when it came to riding a dragon, providing little instructions and information as we went along, but that really was part of the experience and I knew Charlie would appreciate it after it was over.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I found the clips attaching the leather harness straps to the saddle and my feet found the stirrups easily. “I need to adjust just a bit here,” I said before shifting my thighs backwards, my backside coming to rest directly against the front of him. He likewise moved back slightly to give us a bit of room. That wouldn’t matter soon thought because I was certain he’d be right up against me as we picked up speed and left the ground.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I gave Po two swift kicks to her sides with my spurs and she started galumphing forward, her wings flapping wildly, throwing up dirt and debris all around the small stretch of land. Charlie’s grip around my waist tightened. Soon the galloping motions disappeared and the wind whipped at my hair. I reached up and tucked my braid into the shoulder of my vest to keep it from smacking Charlie in the face, not something I’d ever thought about before.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Po headed in the direction of the coast rather than back to the Keep and rather than give her a kick to the side I let her pick our path home. It was late but the moon was rising and there were a few stars that had blinked into existence as we’d gotten ourselves settled.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The benefit of the saddle and harness, along with Po being Kick Trained, meant that I didn’t really have to hold on for dear life. Charlie, however, was a little more flustered. His thighs squeezed mine and his arms held tightly around my midsection.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Po soared out over the cliffs and I watched as the earth gave way to ocean, white caps and sea spray breaking on the rocks about two hundred feet below. My dragon banked south then, leaning us to the left. I gripped the saddle a little harder until she leveled out. As she did so I heard Charlie say, “Holy shit,” into my ear. I laughed. What a thrill this must have been for him. I was so acclimatized to riding Po that I sometimes forgot that no one else in the world got to experience this. This belonged to Po and I alone and I surprised myself just then when I realized I’d offered that up to Charlie. Just like that. Why had I done that?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I didn’t get an opportunity to think it through any further as a rock formation jutted up in front of us and Po banked to the right to go around it. I knew she’d try to show off just a bit. If it weren’t for the fact that Charlie was belted to me I would have lifted myself in the stirrups and maneuvered with her, like the jockey of a racehorse. Instead I just leaned, enjoying the sensation of falling and flying all at the same time.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Flying wasn’t a novelty to witches and wizards anymore because broomsticks had been enchanted to fly for over a thousand years. But flying on a dragon – that was something extraordinary. When you flew a dragon, you had very little control over what the beast would do. I knew Po’s actions and reactions like I knew my own and we moved as a team. But having Charlie behind me gave me a whole other level of appreciation for the effort and training that went in to flying a dragon.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>We were just about to turn inland when a thought popped into my head. I smiled wickedly to myself. I called out to Charlie, “Hold on!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He called back, yelling above the wind, “Why?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I just smiled, took one hand and patted it reassuringly over his two that were clasped at my waist before I once again gripped the saddle front. I kicked Po twice in her right side and braced myself as she twisted and did a full barrel roll to the right. The world tilted. All of a sudden we were upside down and then right-side up again. We leveled and I could feel Charlie’s heart beating frantically against my back as he nearly squeezed all the air from my lungs. I kicked Po twice in her left side and she repeated the maneuver, flipping and twisting to the left. We leveled once more and I both felt and heard Charlie yip and yell, “Wooo!” For the first time he released his grip on my waist and lifted them in the air in exclamation.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>When his hands settled back around my waist I smiled and kicked Po only once in her left side. She turned away from the ocean towards the Keep. We were only a few minutes flight away and landing at the Keep was always much harder than taking off.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I saw the buildings, formed around a central courtyard area, and did one sweep on a large circle before patting Po on the neck twice. This was the signal to land as well as the signal that we were home. She slowed her forward momentum with her great wings and we gently, more gently than usual in fact, descended into the courtyard. She really was on her best behaviour with Charlie still being on her back.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>We landed with a THUMP!, her tail slamming into the ground at the same time as her feet before she folded her wings. I looked out over the assortment of buildings and saw Deacon leaning against one of the pillars that held up the overhang of his bunkie’s front porch. There were lanterns lit all around the courtyard and he was casually puffing on his pipe.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ho, Deac,” I said in greeting. “All good?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He doffed his imaginary hat to us with his pipe. “Welcome back.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I unclipped my harness from the saddle and registered that Charlie’s hands were still clamped firmly around my waist, his chest rising and falling rapidly. We’d been landed for about a minute now and he had yet to release me. “Hey Charlie, you still alive back there?” I teased.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He started and his hands fell away. He cleared his throat, “Uh, yes. Yes, I’m alive.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Excellent,” I replied. “You can un-belt us now.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh, of course,” he said, his hands moving to his belt once more. I was almost disappointed when he shuffled back to create space between us as he re-buckled his belt.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Let him down, Po,” I said gently to my dragon.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She extended her wing to Charlie and I stayed seated as he climbed down. I saw him land on solid ground with slightly shaky legs before looking back up at me and my dragon. I smiled and raised my eyebrows once in challenge.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The twinkle returned to his eyes and he smiled back.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Dinner’s still warm in the mess,” Deacon called, having observed Charlie’s and my interaction with interest. “Po’s too, in the kennel. Figured the less you needed to do when you got back the better.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Thanks, Deac,” I called back before slinging a leg over the front of the saddle and sliding all the way to the ground off the side of Po. I tilted my head from the left to the right, hearing an audible crack.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I magicked the saddle from Po, watching from the corner of my eye as Deacon greeted Charlie with a gruff handshake, full of testosterone. Male Handlers tended to get that way around each other out of habit even if competition between those two was ridiculous. Deacon had thirty years on Charlie. For a moment I thought maybe it was protectiveness over me – Deacon had quickly become like an uncle as well as a boss to me in the years that I’d been here at the reserve. I shrugged away that thought immediately. The notion was indeed ridiculous since Charlie had no prior claim on me. Very few people knew about Auckland.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Come on, Po,” I said to my dragon as I headed in the direction of her kennel. “Dinnertime.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She perked up at the word and giving one last wary glance at Charlie she followed me into the kennel that was illuminated by a few corner lanterns. She made her way to the large wooden trough that contained her evening meal and I smiled when I saw the extra helping she’d received. She’d settle quickly tonight.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I patted her neck as she dug into her food. “Po-ti-di, you are the best dragon a girl could ever ask for, you know that?” She did not respond, too preoccupied with her meal.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I exited the kennel, extinguishing the lanterns and latching the door. I made my way to the mess, a tent-shaped building next to the bunkies, and my stomach growled. Lunch and that cup of coffee had been a long time ago.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>There were a few long tables with benches alongside but those were usually reserved for larger, formal gatherings. Our preferred spot in the mess hall was around the firepit at the centre of the room, seated in plush chairs of varying sizes and colours. I walked over to the table where the food was laid out and scooped a hearty portion of veg, meat, and potatoes into my bowl before smothering it with gravy. I grabbed a spoon, napkin, and flagon of butterbeer before making my way to the firepit and my favourite chair, joining Charlie, Deacon, and Pippa.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>This firepit was where we spent most of our evenings when we weren’t run off our feet by the hard labour of the day. We’d spend hours gabbing, mostly Pippa and I while the guys listened, adding their two-knuts when the mood struck them. Just now Pippa sat to my left with Deacon to my right. Charlie sat directly across from me, shoveling food into his face as fast as he could manage without choking. I started to do the same, listening to the sounds of the crackling fire.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>When I was near the bottom of my bowl, Deacon spoke up, “So, Quinn, Charlie tells me you want to give them a hand with the Horntail transfer.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“That’s about the size of it,” I replied. “Do you need me to find someone to cover for me while I’m away? I could check the roster and see who in the field can come in for a few days.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Deacon waved me off, “Nah, I’m doing the rounds tomorrow and should be able to find someone.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Of course, you’d run off and leave me alone with all these grumpy old men,” Pippa commented jokingly.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I shrugged, “Sorry Pips, but I’m just feeling the bug.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I get it,” her eyes twinkled before dashing between Charlie and me.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I narrowed my gaze. “Not that bug,” I muttered.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Mhm,” she said, not at all convincingly. Pippa was one of the few people who I’d told about Auckland and I was only now regretting that confession by the second as she turned her attention to Charlie, “So Charlie, what’s life in Romania like these days? It’s been a few years since I’ve been.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Charlie looked between us with interest and I hoped to Merlin that he’d missed that last bit of our conversation. “Romania’s busy. The Sanctuary is making strides to halt the endangerment of some dragon species, which is how Dorie got the permit to start breeding.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Deacon’s eyebrows shot up, “He’s breeding dragons? That’s been outlawed since 1709.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I know,” Charlie said, taking a swig of butterbeer. “He petitioned the Minister to start up again on a trial basis. He got the idea into his head a few years back because of this one,” he gestured cup-in-hand towards me, “when he saw the progress she’d been making with her Antipodean. He wants to see if a similar relationship can be developed with a Horntail hatchling. Maybe slow the receding populations at the same time. Course he started with the hardest breed to control. Dorie loves a challenge.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I gaped at him. Dorie had started this wild mission because of <em>me</em>! “What a knucklehead,” I murmured.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“That’s what I said,” Charlie agreed. “But it’s also exciting. And after today, I’m inclined to follow him to the ends of the earth if it meant I could ride a dragon again one day.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ride a dragon?” Pippa asked, confused. She turned to me and I looked away sheepishly, knowing what came next. “Wait, you let <em>him</em> ride Po?! I have been asking for years if you could take me up and you let him? You haven’t even seen him in months!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I sighed heavily and looked at Charlie. “Thanks,” I said. I turned to Pippa, “Look, Pips, if you had a little more experience with dragons, maybe I would have done. But I mean, Charlie’s been handling dragons as long as I have, longer even. It just felt…right this time.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You’ve never taken me up,” Deacon commented from his chair, casually puffing on his pipe.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I snapped my gaze to him as if to say, ‘not helping’, but instead ground out, “You’ve never asked.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Pippa flicked her blonde hair over her shoulder and in that instant I knew she wasn’t truly upset. She was just stirring the pot. I now regretted more than ever that I’d told her about my blackout night with Charlie Weasley. “It’s fine,” she sighed, having the decency to look moderately offended, “maybe next time. Well, that’s me off to my bunk. Nice to see you, Charlie. Do bring Keely back in one piece after this little Hungarian adventure.” She stood and twirled off in the direction of the door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I dared a glance back at Charlie, who watched her retreat with amusement. I met Deacon’s laughing eyes and decided that it was time for me to find my bunk as well. It was nearly ten and we would need to be up again with the crack of dawn to relieve the boys at the Back Forty and carry on towards Germany.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Deacon seemed to arrive at the same conclusions and tapped his pipe on the side of the firepit, emptying it of tobacco remnants. “Come on Weasley, I’ll show you to your bunk for the night.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Cheers, Abernathy. Well, g’night Quinn. See you bright and early.” He winked at me and then drained his mug of beer, moving to deposit it along with his empty bowl back on the main table. They vanished a second after he’d put them down only to reappear in the stack of clean bowls and cups.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I sat at the firepit for a few moments longer as the men exited the hall before carrying my bowl to the table and heading for the door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I braced myself as I entered my bunkie.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The lantern was still lit and Pippa was seated on her bottom bunk brushing out her hair, wearing sleep shorts and a tank top. I crossed to my dresser and started to peel off my vest before removing my shirt and unbuttoning my khakis.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“So,” Pippa finally spoke, “you’re headed to Romania in the morning then?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yes,” I replied.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“With Charlie Weasley?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And the others. Eddie and Kendrick will be with us as well.” I turned from my dresser, “Look I know what you’re thinking. But it isn’t like that between Charlie and me. It was one night, months ago.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She gave me a knowing look, “Yeah, but you wish it were more than that, don’t you?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I turned from her to step into my sleep joggers and an old t-shirt, avoiding answering her. Did I wish it were more? Heavens, I didn’t even remember the full night, not in detail. It had been an aberration, a lapse in judgement involving too much firewhisky. How could I want more when I didn’t even recall the details of the encounter? Had the last few hours with Charlie been enough to rekindle whatever spark had been lit back in the autumn? Or was it just the fact that it had been so long since I’d had any contact with a man? I was more inclined to think it was the latter and had nothing to do with Charlie Weasley.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I finally turned back to Pippa. “I don’t know. It doesn’t matter though. Charlie Weasley doesn’t do ‘more’.” He had a reputation for being consistently uninterested at the same time as being a notorious flirt, a point of great frustration for many females who’d crossed his path. That was why I never took his flirting to heart. He’d never indicated the slightest sober interest in me beyond our playful banter and dragon conversation. “Besides, that is not where the focus is going to be on this trip. We have a Horntail to transfer and that is going to take a lot of effort.” Merlin, I hoped it took a lot of effort. I hoped that at the end of each day I would be too drained and exhausted to even think about Charlie Weasley, romantically or otherwise.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Pippa nodded her head. “This life really isn’t conducive to relationships anyway,” she sighed sadly. “But it’s still a nice thought sometimes.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It was true. Most Dragon Handlers didn’t marry and didn’t have children. If they were in relationships, it was with fellow Handlers and they tended to not last very long. Handlers were a hot-headed bunch and two in close proximity for extended periods of time often had explosive results. I looked at Pippa, thinking about her last failed relationship. Her partner had been a witch from the Norwegian Dragon Sanctuary. They’d been together on and off for years, and when things between them went south for the last time, Pippa had requested a transfer to just to get away from her. It was still an open wound for Pippa.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It didn’t help the Handlers were injured so often and no one who wasn’t in the business of dragons would understand why we risked life and limb for the majestic creatures. Pippa was a healer and not a Handler and therefore was only on the cusp of understanding what it was like.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>This had been my career for over ten years now and I couldn’t boast to more than a handful of romantic interludes, Charlie included. Charlie was perhaps the person with whom I was the most compatible out of all my romantic partners, at least personality and interest wise. I think I mentioned the fact that I was a Dragon Handler to one and he’d taken that fact, coupled with my red hair, to just mean I was dynamite in the sack. It was just a thrill for him. Others I’d mentioned it to mainly steered clear, thinking I was too…intimidating? Not worth their time? Who knows? Unless they were in the business, I’d stopped telling guys what I did for a living. What was the point? It would never go anywhere.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>But I admitted it was still nice to think about. We were so isolated here at the Sanctuary that roughly once a month Pippa and I made our way into Aberystwyth or Cardiff, or at times all the way to London (the beauty of Apparating) and we’d bomb around at a few local pubs. These outings rarely yielded any results in the romance department but it was nice to forget about the rough and tumble of our lives, if only for a night. We’d drink and we’d dance and we’d flirt. But at the end of the night we’d head back to our rented apartment or hotel room, collapse into our beds and then return back to the Sanctuary the next day.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Maybe while I was in Romania… No, I stomped on that thought right away. I couldn’t plan for these things to happen, otherwise the anticipation and eventual frustration and disappointment would overwhelm me. One day at a time, and tomorrow I had to wrangle a dragon, which would need one hundred and ten percent of my attention.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I flicked off the lantern and crawled into the bunk just above Pippa’s. I lay down and settled myself into the cozy mattress and pillow. “When I come back, Pips, we should go into London. Make a weekend of it,” I suggested.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It was quiet for a few moments before I heard her response. “I’d like that.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I felt guilty. I knew our discussion had brought up some unpleasant memories and her poking and prodding had been as much for my benefit as it had been a distraction for her. She only wanted to see me happy since it brought her some small amount of shared joy. Everything else aside, I was grateful to her for her efforts, while at the same time mortified that she’d brought it up at all. I could never fault her for trying. I would have done the same had our situations been reversed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I closed by eyes and abandoned all thoughts of relationships and Charlie Weasley and focused instead on bringing down my heartrate to fall asleep. My last thoughts as I drifted off to sleep were of Pippa, wonderful woman and generous friend that she was, and my hopes that she’d find her happiness again.</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>